Q: Hi, I have a dispute with one immigration consultancy firm in Dubai. I have signed an agreement with them for seeking their services two years ago. However, later I came to know that they have not provided complete information for qualification on the first instance due to which my case does not qualify at all for Canadian immigration. Now, I am asking for cancellation of the agreement, which they refuse claiming it was my mistake. Kindly advise regarding the right forum and the way to proceed legally with my case. Regards, Mudassar Farooq

س: كيف يمكنني استرداد مبلغ 11,000 درهم إماراتي الذي تم دفعه إلى مستشار متخصص في مجال الهجرة؟ لقد تم تحصيل المبلغ مقابل خدمة لست مؤهلاً لها. لديّ تسجيل صوتي للوعود التي قدمها المستشار.

س: توجهت إلى مكتب استشارات هجرة في دبي للحصول على تصريح عمل في كندا، ووقعنا اتفاقية ودفعت 28600 درهم إماراتي. تنص الاتفاقية على أنه إذا لم تنجز الشركة تصريح العمل الخاص بي في غضون 6 - 8 أشهر، فسيحق لي استرداد كامل المبلغ في غضون 90 يوم عمل. تخلفت الشركة عن الموعد المتفق عليه للإنجاز وطلبت وثيقة استرداد ووقعت عليها مع الشركة تنص على أنه "سيتم رد المبلغ في غضون 90 يوم عمل". يبدو أن الشركة ليست على استعداد لرد الأموال بعد 90 يوم عمل. في هذه الحالة، ماذا يجب أن أفعل أو أين يجب أن أشتكي لاستعادة أموالي من الشركة في أسرع وقت ممكن؟ ملاحظة: ستنتهي صلاحية تأشيرتي في 24 فبراير 2023، وستنتهي فترة الـ 90 يوم عمل التي يجب على الشركة رد المبلغ خلالها في 4 فبراير 2023. شكرًا لمساعدتك!

Q: Dear Sir/Madam, I applied for a Poland work permit through a consultant, but it has been almost 13 months and the application is still in progress. Is there any legal way to take action against the consultant?

Q: Hi, I applied for a European work permit through an immigration consultant based in Dubai. They promised to complete the process within 7 months. Now it is more than 8 months, and they did nothing in the application. Now they are not returning the amount which I had paid to them. Their promise to complete the process in a given time was via email. What legal option do I have to get my money back?

Q: Good Morning, A fraudulent company committed to providing results from the AIP program in Canada. I paid approximately AED 80,000 in November 2023, and they gave me a post-dated cheque to ensure my amount. They failed to deliver the results as promised; the owner himself decided to roll back the program and proceed with a refund, but he eventually did not fulfill his commitments, even after agreeing to installments. We have been chasing him since March 2024, but he is not responding. He has nothing to say, and currently, he is not in the UAE. In this case, how can I recover my hard-earned money, which is for our children? How can I file a case? Currently, I am living in Saudi Arabia. I know there is some platform where I can raise an online complaint, but I’m not sure how long it could take to finalize the case. What are the chances of winning? Many people have been trapped in this fraud; I am not the only one. The owner committed this fraud through his sales employee with over 100 victims.

Q: I'm looking for advice- I had applied for immigration service to Canada via an agency in Dubai, however, it's been a few months and there is no positive reply from their end. They keep giving evasive answers, such as my job role is not coming up, or the Government has put the applications on hold, or other things which are totally different from the picture painted before availing their service. The contract mentions this about refund: "The company is eligible to provide a refund if any wrong information is provided during our advocacy while discussing the case with the consultant." My Question is- are such immigration consultancies legal in the UAE? Is it legal for them to provide such services? And am I eligible for a refund if not for damage claims (for wasting my time with their inefficient services)?

An interview-format article covering the topic of contracts in the UAE. This is from the legal podcast of lawyer Ludmila Yamalova, the founder of Lawgical with LYLAW.

The Law sets up the legal framework for the protection of consumer rights in the UAE. The Law establishes the Higher Committee for Consumer Protection and the Consumer Protection Department, and sets up the fines for breach of its provisions.

The provisions of this law, promulgating UAE Civil Code, govern the civil transactions in the United Arab Emirates. The commercial transactions remain subject to the laws and regulations applicable in their regard.